Happy Friday to everyone and here is to as little snow as possible... who wants a SNOW DAY on Saturday anyway?? LOL! I guess in the end at least we know the children (our own and our Cantiague kids) will be able to enjoy it in a carefree and relaxed way. Not sure what the snow fall totals are slated to reach but I am prepared for a weekend of binge show watching and some NFL Playoffs - totally rooting for the Panthers and Broncos!
I want to thank you all for your reflections, comments and passing conversations about the topic of homework, which has been a recurring theme here in the Fast Friday Focus. Allison's reflection forced me to pause (I was shaking my head in agreement throughout that reflection) and Tali's reflection gave me hope that not all homework has to be a bad thing. Those positive possibilities related to homework continue this week with a reflection from our amazing kindergarten team who share the nightly activities that encourage children to extend their learning in fun and meaningful ways. Their reflection has challenged me to think about this whole notion of "rebranding homework" so that it develops a positive reputation because of its meaningfulness and importance to children... I am working on a personal blog post on the very subject to come soon!
As it relates to homework and our practices here at Cantiague, please come prepared for a discussion at our February 2nd FEO. Several of us will share a proposal from the Shared Decision Making Team about a change in homework "policy" here at Cantiague, which I think is a great opportunity for us. Although my goal is not to micromanage the homework experience at our school, I do think consistency in practice (amount, quality and frequency) is critical to our long term success as a space that places learning at the center of everything we do. So, please come prepared to share your practices and beliefs as they relate to homework but also take a moment to review the research about homework too (shared in last week's Fast Friday Focus, which you can scroll down to find) because our decisions must be informed and rooted in research to ensure that we are doing what is in the best interest of children. We can no longer give homework just because that is the way it has always been done - we are better than that and our children deserve better.
Ok... I am temporarily coming down off my homework soapbox and look forward to our conversation, planning session and collaboration on February 2nd where we will leave the room with a standard practice as it relates to homework. Looking long term, beyond the upcoming discussion about homework, we will be revisiting the conversation about implementing unit plans (using the UbD model) later this year as we being to plan for the 2016-2017 school year. I have really enjoyed the literacy check in conversations where we have closely analyzed units of study in reading and writing and I think we must employ that unit planning approach in mathematics, science and social studies... I am really excited about our next steps as a staff!
#EDUWINS for the week included...
- Enjoyed visiting Rande's room while the children were using the Chromebooks during their writing workshop block. The children were researching various self-selected topics to learn as much as possible to eventually present in written form (and possibly other forms). The children were so engaged and they were accessing everything from websites to YouTube videos to learn about their topics of interest. It was awesome to watch because every child was working and every children was successfully gathering notes for their pieces - AWESOMENESS!
- In Melanie's classroom, the children were engaged in their nonfiction writing unit during writing workshop and it was really interesting to watch. The children were writing about topics that they were "experts" about including everything from hockey to chess to baking. Their goal was to develop a book about their self-selected topic and create a nonfiction informational text on the subject comprised of multiple chapters. Although this was incredibly challenging and the children needed support, it was impressive to see what some of the authors had produced - it is definitely a challenging unit of study!
- While visiting Mandy's room, the children were finishing a project connected to Martin Luther King Jr. and the kids were writing about ways that they were going to be more like MLK Jr. Although this was a sophisticated and challenging idea, the children were highly engaged and were generating some appropriate and incredibly positive ideas - it was awesome to watch!
Tech Tip of the Week...
Check out this article about how to share links with your students (really great resources and tips): 10 Ways For Teachers To Share Links in Class!
Blogs Worth Reading...
10 Classroom Management Strategies That Really Work by Allie Magnunson
Give Me A Break by Lindsey Peltak
Teaching Good Study Habits: Minute by Minute by Heather Lambert
Staff Reflection/Blog...
Our latest post comes from Ally, Mandy & Risa, who share a totally different take on HW and the possibilities it can offer if framed in a certain way where children have choice and don't feel like they are doing "HW" every night. A MUST read!
Reframing Homework
As the saying goes “all I really needed to know I learned in Kindergarten,” however, the times they are a changing. A day in the life of a Kindergartener has evolved both in the classroom and at home. The kindergarten experience does not only include life skills (sharing, working with others, learning how to be a student) but now also includes the basic reading, writing and math skills to jumpstart a lifelong love of learning. With this in mind we have reframed what homework looks like in Kindergarten. Though the skills in Kindergarten are basic, the way homework is presented can be transformed and applied to any skill level.
Homework should involve choice. The students are given opportunities to own their learning experiences at home. The value is placed on the process, and not the product. Twice a week our children bring home a just right book of their choice to read with their families. It does not involve writing, recording, a log or even a signature. They are reading simply to build a love of reading. The children are excited and empowered to show off their new skills with each book they bring home, and feel little pressure to do anything besides read. Reading at home is something many of them have grown to look forward to and we wouldn’t want it any other way!
On another night the children practice their sight words using a “word study menu”. We have provided them with different activities to choose from that tap in to different modalities and interests. These are as simple as writing their words in the steam in the shower, tracing words on a family member’s back, cheering the words like a cheer leader or building the words out of legos or different materials. The children look forward to these activities and we are seeing a new level excitement surrounding learning their sight words. What they see as a fun project, game, or activity is helping to build their foundational skills.
While there are other nights that include math homework, writing tasks, or other activities based on what we are learning in school, these tasks are kept short and simple.
After spending the entire school day learning, working and listening, they have little capacity to do much more, so we’ve found anything beyond that lacks value and purpose!
When homework is developmentally appropriate it relieves pressure and instead reframes it into a stress free, flexible, and most importantly positive learning experience. We’ve learned that when it comes to homework less is more in every way… less stress, less time and less pressure is more excitement, more smiles, and a more authentic learning experience.
Monday, January 25
"A" Week
Gr. 2 Literacy Check-In at 2:15pm
Tuesday, January 26
Incoming Kindergarten Registration
PTA Meeting at 8:45am in the Library
FEO - District-wide grade level teacher meetings
PTA Meeting at 8:45am in the Library
FEO - District-wide grade level teacher meetings
Wednesday, January 27
Incoming Kindergarten Registration
Gr. 5 Winter Concert @10:30am for rehearsal (Gr. 3 & 4 invited); 7pm for families
Gr. 5 Winter Concert @10:30am for rehearsal (Gr. 3 & 4 invited); 7pm for families
Thursday, January 28
Incoming Kindergarten Registration
Visitors in the building to learn about Genius Hour
CST @ 1:20pm
Cultural Arts!
Friday, January 22
Visitors in the building to learn about Genius Hour
CST @ 1:20pm
Cultural Arts!
Friday, January 22
Incoming Kindergarten Registration
Happy TGIF!
Happy TGIF!
Reminders...
- Don't forget to implement lessons from our Digital Citizenship Curriculum... access it here!
- Our next whole staff FEO will be Tues. Feb. 2nd in our library where we will be discussing HW!
- Don't forget that PTA Health Awareness Week is coming up before the February break... mark your calendars!
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